If you listen to Jaromir Jagr, that might be the holy trinity of talent in the NHL at the moment.

OK, Jagr didn't name Crosby and Ovechkin specifically, but there is widespread agreement that they are the league's two best players -- even if Crosby hasn't played in nearly 11 months.

But when he talks about Giroux, he says there is very little in the way of comparison in the NHL.

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A performance like the one Giroux put on during the Flyers' 5-3 win in Carolina Monday is what prompts Jagr to gush about his linemate.

Giroux scored twice -- and would have had a third goal had not his shot hit the inseam of Wayne Simmonds' hockey pants before going into the net. He has 11 goals and 22 points -- second-best in the NHL in both categories behind Phil Kessel, who has 12 and 24, respectively.

"I love to play with him," Jagr said. "I don't want to say he's the best in the league right now, but he's top three for sure. I never thought that at the end of my career I would play with a guy like that.

"That's what makes me happy. I want to play for him. All my years in the NHL, I always had guys play for me. I had Ron Francis. He was always trying to make sure he's there for me every game and that's what I want to be for (Giroux). He's going to have a great year and I just want to help him."

Giroux is certainly underrated in the NHL and doesn't get the recognition he might deserve sometimes, but how can you tell he's really that much better than almost everyone else?

"Twenty years in hockey, trust me. I can see these things," Jagr said.

Giroux's first goal came 1:19 into the game when Jagr found his linemate splitting the defense during a Carolina line change. He walked in alone on Cam Ward and snapped a shot high over the goalie's glove for a 1-0 lead.

Giroux's second goal made it 3-1, and this one was more about the talent of the "Little Genius," as Jagr likes to call him.

Giroux took a touch pass from Jagr, gained the Carolina zone, faked a shot and then snapped another shot over Ward's glove.

For Giroux, they were his 10th and 11th goals of the season -- in just 17 games -- which puts him on a 52-goal pace.

"The first goal was a nice pass by Jagr getting me the puck and I was able to shoot it high glove," Giroux said. "The second goal I was trying to surprise (Ward) and go high-glove again. I kind of faked him and made a quick shot there."

Giroux almost potted a third goal, but his shot nicked off the front of Simmonds' pants and trickled down through Ward's five-hole to make it 4-1.

When told of the high praise Jagr heaped on him, Giroux blushed, smiled and then promptly downplayed the comments.

"It's a nice compliment," Giroux said. "But it's just one game."

It was just one game, but when you're scoring more than every player in the NHL except one, it's likely been a string of games.

"He works so hard on the ice," coach Peter Laviolette said. "Obviously his talent is what you see as the end result, but I think it's the work that he puts into the game. It's constant energy, constant motion. It's the desire and passion to win those one-on-one battles to get the space and the room to beat somebody. It's amazing to watch him.

"He's really establishing himself as one of the top players in the game."

That makes two votes.

Max Talbot scored the other goal for the Flyers, one-timing a blind pass from Jake Voracek past Ward. It was Talbot's sixth goal of the season, which is an unexpected pace for a third or fourth line forward.

Voracek made the play happen, stripping Jamie McBain behind the net and finding Talbot alone in front.

Ward was pulled after the Simmonds goal, having allowed four goals on 17 shots. He was replaced by former Flyer Brian Boucher, who made 10 saves to give the Hurricanes momentum to make it a close game.

Carolina fought back behind Patrick Dwyer, who scored his first goal of the season on a shorthanded breakaway with less than a second remaining in the first period and added a second shorthanded goal on a penalty shot in the third period to trim what was a three-goal Flyers lead to a 4-3 lead.

It marked the first time in Flyers history that there were shorthanded penalty-shot goals in back-to-back games.

However, with the Hurricanes pressuring to get the tying goal, Chris Pronger, who finished with three assists, sprung Voracek who then made another pretty pass to a streaking (and sliding) Matt Read. He tipped it past Boucher for a much-needed insurance marker.

Read crashed hard to the boards and favored his left knee as he was helped off the ice. Afterward he was limping in the locker room and said he felt like he had a "dead leg," but said he'd be fine.

With the win, the Flyers (10-4-3, 23 points) moved into a dead heat with the Pittsburgh Penguins for the best record in the Eastern Conference.